Rashbi’s Tomb To Be Closed From Thursday After No Insurer Found To Insure The Site

JERUSALEM (VINnews) — From this coming Thursday the directors of the tomb of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai (Rashbi) in Meron will be closing the site to visitors, since no insurer is currently willingly to provide insurance for potential damages to visitors, according to a Ynet report.

Various different insurers were approached after the tragedy which occurred last Lag Ba’Omer when 45 people were killed in a crush after the lighting of the Toldos Aharon rebbe. Since then the site has been open without any insurance and thousands of visitors continue to arrive there without any form of insurance, meaning that if they are injured they cannot receive any financial restitution.

Recently, after the government failed to find a solution, the “Committee of Five” comprised of five different institutions which run the site announced that they are removing their responsibility from what occurs at the site and from Wednesday night the site will be closed to visitors.

In a letter to Religious Affairs Minister Matan Kahane, the director of the tomb, Eli Freund, said that “if no solution including a viable insurance policy will be found, the committee will be forced to announce the closing of the site from Wednesday night.”